


Homecoming

by Firejay112



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: Doctor Aphra (Comics)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Closure, Family, Force Ghost Anakin Skywalker, Human Disaster Anakin Skywalker, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Redemption
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:26:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22719136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Firejay112/pseuds/Firejay112
Summary: Inspired by Doctor Aphra #40. After Endor, Doctor Chelli Lona Aphra is still her usual, crooked archeologist self hunting for ancient artefacts. Until one of them, found in an ancient Force temple, mysteriously attaches itself to her hand...Note: fixed some typos and missing words.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 21





	Homecoming

There were many reasons Doctor Chelli Lona Aphra always wore some sort of glove. When one was an archeologist, particularly one who specialized in ancient and definitely dangerous artefacts from ancient Force-user sects, wearing some form of protection was always a must. At least, that was the official reason. Aphra had cut off the fingers to her own gloves because--alright, she'd admit it-- that made a better fashion statement, a complement to her rogueish attire which never failed to make the ladies flock to her air of danger and mystery. Oh, and some men too, but they didn't really count that much for Aphra, apart from if they had a fortune she could scam them out of. 

Digression aside, Aphra never understood the need for excessive personal protective equipment. After all, she'd never had any of her artifacts get the better of her. She'd had a few close calls, of course. Nothing she couldn't handle.

Except for this, the small, bird statue carved of some blue crystal that had somehow stuck itself to her right hand. She scowled at it, shaking her hand again, to no avail. The crystal bird--a convor, her encyclopedia had said--remained stuck to her palm and finger, through her glove, as if it had melted into her very skin. She'd tried prying it off, melting it off, to no avail. She'd tried smashing it, only to bruise her thumb. Now she was stuck piloting the Ark Angel II through hyperspace, on her way to a shady medical facility in the Atraxas belt, hoping that they could do something about it before the artifact did whatever it was meant to do, and before selling her out to the highest bidding bounty office. The fact that her largest dead-or-alive bounty--the one placed on her head by Darth Vader himself--had expired, courtesy of the Dark Lord dying before anyone could catch up with Aphra, should at least gice her some breathing space. When she'd heard the news, Aphra had first and foremost felt so much lighter out of pure relief. Now she could stop looking over her shoulder for a murderous half-droid sociopath and concern herself with looking over her shoulder for the other bounties on her head. Next to Vader's, they were laughable.

Aphra sighed, slumping in the pilot's chair and massaging her forehead, staring at the blue convor stuck to her other hand.

"I guess you're not going to be nice enough to tell me what you are, are you?" Aphra asked. 

It was crazy to talk to objects, but then she was never exactly what people called "sane" either. But still, she was alone, and with a few hours of hyperspace in front of her and not being able to sleep from the weight stuck to her hand, Aphra had nothing better to do.

That's why she was startled when the statue's eyes and wings opened, and the crystal began glowing blue.

"I believe this artifact was made to try and connect to dead loved ones," a quiet, male voice said from behind her. "Instead, it allows the Light Side of the Force to be sensed by non-Force-Sensitives."

Aphra yelled and sprang out of the pilot's seat, fumbling for her blaster with her left hand only to drop it on the floor. A tall young man around ten years Aphra's junior stood before her, outlined in blue. He had wavy brown hair, blue eyes (she'd seen those eyes before. But where?) and wore brown Jedi robes. But despite his apparent youth something prevented her from labelling him as a kid. What the kriff? 

"Who and what are you?" Aphra asked.  
"In life, my name was Anakin Skywalker," the man said.  
"As in... the Jedi from the Clone Wars? Luke Skywalker's dad?" Aphra asked. Well, that would explain the familiarity. The kid looked like him.  
"The very same," the ghost said, but his gaze held regret and shame.   
"Why are you here?" Aphra asked.  
"To thank you," Skywalker said, clasping his translucent hands behind his back. That posture also was familiar, in a way that sent a cold feeling down her spine. "For all the things I didn't thank you for when I was alive. And for helping part of me realize that no matter what or who we are, it is never too late to do right by the ones we love... even if all we are doing is giving them time."

Aphra blinked and peered at the ghost, his words--the way he held himself reminding her too much of...

"Vader?" she asked.  
"Not anymore."

In another life, Aphra would have been afraid. She might have been pissed off. But in that moment... she was curious.

"Did you find out what it's like to do good?" Aphra asked the ghost.  
"I have," the man who had been Darth Vader actually smiled. It was a slightly crooked smile, but it reached his eyes. He looked at relieved, and at peace, nothing like the broken tortured man Aphra had glimpsed on the asteroid Helix-13v and the martyrium of Frozen Tears on Tython. "Finally."  
Aphra found herself smiling. "I'm glad, Boss."  
"Aphra," Anakin stepped forward, placing a glowing hand on her shoulder. She started, actually feeling its weight, and looked up into serious blue eyes. "It's my turn to impart you with the little advice I can give you, now... from one catastrophic screw-up to another. It's never too late for forgiveness or a happy ending, never as long as the ones who love you are still alive."

Aphra swallowed, the ghost's words hitting far too close to a raw nerve than she cared to admit. 

The hand on her shoulder squeezed. "If my son could forgive me of all people, there is always hope for you. All you need to do is let go of believing you cannot change, and change yourself to be worthy of the forgiveness your loved ones give you."  
"I always let the ones I love down," Aphra said.  
Anakin snorted. "I turned to the Dark Side to save my wife, in doing so destroying everything and everyone dear to me, including the family I could have had. I have effectively ruined not only my own life, but my wife's and our children's, not to mention the lives of countless others in the Galaxy because I took my pain out on innocents. My actions betrayed everything my loved ones ever even *stood* for. I would call *that* letting my loved ones down, wouldn't you agree?"  
"That's... actually an understatement," Chelli said after her brain had become able to wrap itself around the magnitude of what the ghost had just admitted to.

*She* was a screw-up. What Vader--Anakin--had just admitted to... That was a whole different order of magnitude of screw up. No wonder the temple on Tython had completely disabled him.

"And still, my son forgave me," Anakin said, as if reading her thoughts. "So if I--Darth Vader--could be forgiven... you better believe me when I say it will never too late for you. I'm not saying that changing to earn that forgiveness is easy, though. Far from it. But it's not impossible, either. And if there's one thing I learned too late, is that the difficulty is worth it. At least the you get to spend the little time you have with the ones you love instead of wasting that time focused on yourself."

Aphra mulled that over. She imagined seeing her father... Vulaada... Tolvan again... and her heart gave a small miserable spasm in her chest she promptly ignored. She was alone. She was fine with that. Right.

"I think that's the most words I've ever heard you say to anyone, Boss," Aphra said, trying to change the subject.

The ghost gave her a flat, unimpressed look. Somehow she suspected that he had probably given her the exact same look many time from under Vader's mask.

"Do not change the subject, Doctor," he said, and while his voice was nothing like Vader's, his tone and words were still much too similar for Aphra to ever doubt it was the same man.  
"I don't even know where they are anyway," Aphra said, shrugging, pretending she didn't care.

The knowing look on Anakin's face told her he didn't buy her bluff one bit. 

"Fortunately for you, I am one with the Force, and the Force knows everything," he said, and waved his free hand. 

Aphra actually felt something change, and then there was a jolt and the ship dropped out of hyperspace abruptly. Aphra turned, only to see a green and blue planet in the viewport--that was totally not the Atraxas belt. 

"What--" she gasped.  
"Your family waits for you on the surface," Anakin said from behind her. 

She glanced at him over her shoulder--he was smiling. Then she looked back to the planet.

"It is time, Chelli," the ghost said. "Go home."

The statue stuck to Aphra's hand abruptly fell to the floor, back to its original blue. She picked it up. This time, it didn't stick.  
And when she looked around, the Force Ghost was gone.


End file.
